New release from Ayat Allah ‘Ali Hussayni Khamina’i: “Jihadi Groups Should Promote Their Activities and Let People Know What Great Achievements They Have Made”

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

First of all, I am very happy to have met you dear youth. I listened to your statements and I benefited from many of your remarks in the real sense of the word. Thank God we have competent and broad-minded individuals in jihadi groups who formulate good plans.

I want to raise two, three points today. Of course, I have written down other issues as well, but I see that you already know most of them and therefore, it is not necessary for me to repeat them. I only wish to reiterate two, three points:

One point is that the arena of jihad is a vast arena. You could advance and progress 10 times more than what you have already accomplished. Jihad is like this. Jihad means a movement which originates from heart-felt belief, faith and the employment of your capabilities. If that faith and heart-felt belief already exists, then there is no boundary for your work. This is because capabilities are infinite. There is really no boundary for human capability. Your heart, your soul, your mind and your brain have extraordinary capability. An example is the feats that you have already accomplished.

From 20 years ago onwards, you have advanced from very simple tasks to such macro planning as evidenced today. Therefore, you should continue this. You should keep moving forward and you should do something to help us benefit from a large number of Islamic revolutionary generations in our country who can reach a point in terms of understanding managerial issues, public service and administering justice. These are things which are necessary in Islam and an Islamic community needs to administer justice- where ordinary human intellect has never set foot, a point which can provide a model for everyone. This is one point, which can be summarized as progress in the direction of jihadi thinking and jihadi work.

The second point is that your work will become popular and public only when your orientation has turned into a public discourse. According to the gentleman in the meeting, you represent only 10, 15 percent of the youth of the country in these 12,000 jihadi groups mentioned. Why should the other 85, 90 percent be deprived of this auspicious jihadi movement? You should promote your viewpoints and this promotion is facilitated only when it turns into a discourse.

In the past, we have experienced this many times and I have some examples in mind, but I do not want to mention them. You can increase your number by promoting this discourse. You can improve in quantity as well as in quality. One of the means to do so is what I said to the other gentleman in the meeting, which is doing promotional work in a correct and artistic manner.

I sometimes see that there have been good promotional activities. For example, one of the friends in the meeting pointed to the issue of Ghale Ganj [in Kerman province] and I am well aware of that. Well, they have frequently spoken about the achievements in Ghale Ganj, but the people do not know that a task has been carried out in an underprivileged area by a determined group of people and that it has uprooted poverty in one part of the area. This is a very important issue, but the people do not know about it.

If this is explained to them, notice how hopeful youth will become. Regarding the issue of increasing the member of jihadi groups and jihadi activists, I should add that you should promote this thought, this task and this movement in familial, academic, school and work environments. By Allah’s favor, they should pursue this task. This was another point.

In my opinion, an important point in this regard is the issue of stability and solidity. I strongly request that you attach great significance to this matter. You are working with a young group of individuals. Youth are subject to two perils: one is the peril of lack of stability on one’s path – which means changing one’s mind – and another is the peril of – to say it in a nutshell – being affected by human maladies. You should take care to protect your youth from these perils. Stability is required on the “straight path”. They should enjoy stability.

Apart from ideological tasks and the like – which are definitely necessary in their own respect – part of your duties is related to practice. Practice means worshipping God, paying attention, saying daily prayers on time, reading the Quran every day and attending to mustahabat [religious deeds which are not compulsory, but recommended] as much as possible. Imagine that a group of youth are working in a certain area. This group of youth should definitely say daily prayers in the mosque and they should do so on time and in an attentive way.

Another task is purifying our motives. Youth should try to work for the sake of God. This is difficult for the likes of us at this age. If we have not done this before, if we have not thought about it when we were young and if we decide to jump into the arena of purity all of a sudden, this will be very difficult. However, it is very easy for you at this age. It is easy to purify one’s motives at a young age. You can really purify your motives for the sake of God.

When you purify your motives, divine mercy and guidance will shower on you from all sides: “This is the Book, in it is guidance, without doubt, to those who fear Allah.” [The Holy Quran, 2: 2] The Quran reserves its guidance for those who fear God. If these points are truly observed, then divine guidance and assistance – spiritual and intellectual – will increase as well. I hope that you will be successful, God willing.